2021 • Harmonie • Grade 3 • Durée 7′

When they are children, some people put their toys, drawings and wishes for the future in a box that they bury somewhere in order to dig it up when they are adult. The title "Postcards from tomorrow" was inspired by this tradition. what wishes would we put in those boxes for the future, what kind of postcards would we send to our grandchildren ?

To write this piece, I was inspired by three pictures that have some symbolic meaning linked to that question : each movement, played attacca, refers to one of them.

I. Abandoned Blockhouses 

The title refers to the war and other horrors in the history of humanity. It is of absolute importance that we never forget what has been done before : like abandoned blockhouses, the reliques of the war will remain for a long time. but we must go forward.

The movement starts with an aleatoric passage and with the exposition of the earth theme (low instruments m. 5), that will come as a leitmotiv throughout the piece. The theme develops into a cry of despair in d minor (A), preceeding a section representing the horrors the war, figured by the aggressive percussions and low brass (m. 22). The ostinato at winds and vibraphone foreshadow the last section, a fanfare based on the well-known gregorian dies irae, whose text asks god for pardon.


II. Pagoda at the lake 

The second movement was inspired by the pagoda, a religous building that is aimed to house relics of saint people, in some asian worships. This could symbolise the fact that we humans need introspection and have to look back to our roots.

This calm, peaceful movement gives the lead to some solists in the ensemble and follows an arch-form (abcba), symbolising the well-balanced architecture of a pagoda.


III. Building up the bridges 

The last movement is a call for hope. Once our past remembered, we must now be "building up the bridges" between each other and towards a better world, facing much danger (war, climate change...), but with the faith to make this world better.

The rythmic pattern set in the first few measures is used like a "bridge" between the different sections of the movement, implying a rondo form. The first two sections remind the material of the previous movements. Then, the motif is developped in a more funky way, aiming to an exhuberant finale in D major. 

In July 2021, this piece was granted with the first price at the "La Bacchetta d'Oro" Composition Contest in the section B (Benito Pica Trophy). This work will also be played as a compulsory piece during the "La Bacchetta d'Oro" Wind Band Contest in May 2022 and is published by Accademia 2008 musical editions.

https://gauthierdupertuis.com/en/music/postcards-from-tomorrow/

Postcards from tomorrow (Concert Band) / MG Düdingen, Dominik Ziörjen (conductor)

Stratoscape is a colourful and contrasting work for intermediate wind band, depicting the view of our earth as seen from the stratosphere. This voyage into the sky is pictural, but also methaphoric, as it is also a distancing from our world.

The work is divided in 5 sections and has a general 3-part "fast - slow - fast" structure : sect. I - II / III / IV - V. I tried to variate the language to create contrasting sections, and thus, the work is unified with its musical material, which is fast entirely derived from the main theme exposed in the first measures of the piece, whether it be in a rythmic or melodic way.


Main theme, as exposed at m. 1 - 8
I. Ignition ! (Allumage des moteurs !)

In this section , I tried to set in music the majesty of our planet and the excitement to see it from the stratosphere. Let's start our journey to the skies ! The work begins with energetic fanfare-like introduction, preceding the exposition of a musical leitmotiv (mark A) and to a secondary theme (25), which will serve as main melodical material in other sections. A march-like development of theme occurs at letter B, before the return of the introction at mark E.

II. Broadness & The Big Blue (Vasteté & Le Grand Bleu)

The secondary musical material of section I is now treated in a minimalistic and atmospheric way (F), depicting the broadness of the landscapes of our planet as well as the wideness of the seas. The music dilocates from mark I, exposing a crucial low-brass motif, derived from the leitmotivic third-relation present in the whole piece.

III. Stars Shining from Down and Above (Des étoiles scintillant d’en bas et d’en haut)

The middle part sets in music the fragile beauty of our earth at night. Theres is also a duality in the elements depicted here : the stars shining from down (the lights / the humans on the earth) and above (the stars in the sky / the people who left).

After some atmospheric variations of the musical leitmotiv from mark A (J), the oboe exposes a lyrical motif, rythmically and directionally derived from the main theme (K), leading to a quiet section, with various solos in the ensemble.

IV. Destructive Forces  (Forces destructrices)

This section intends to describe the majesty (fanfare sections at marks Q and W) and the raw power of nature, but also the destruction caused by humans : The rytmic motif derived from the low-brass at letter I is developed here in a very agressive manner (mark it really has to be raw sweating and muscular power!), giving the lead to the massive percussion section (letter R) and developing the material of previous sections in a sacarstic and mad way. The music collapses at m. 308, leading to an haunting quasi senza misura section, then returning to the rythmic pulsation of the beginning of the section.

V. One and Only Home (Notre seule et unique demeure)

This little section, concieved as a finale, returns shortly to a minimalist writing (mark X), giving us a little break after the sonorous end of section IV, and summarizing the material of the previous section. The final section beginning at mark Y ends the piece in an enthusiastic way.


This piece was first composed in november 2020 and profoundly revised in early 2022.

The work has not been played yet.

Stratoscape (Wind Band DEMO)

Dans ma pièce Postcards from tomorrow, j’avais tenté de véhiculer un message positif concernant la capacité de l’être humain relever les défis qui lui sont posés. J’ai eu envie de traiter une nouvelle fois de la condition humaine, mais cette fois de manière plus pessimiste.

Le titre de l’œuvre fait référence au roman Lord of the Flies de William Golding, paru en 1954. L’œuvre raconte les aventures d’une chorale de jeunes enfants et adolescents échoués sur une île déserte après le crash de leur avion, abattu en pleine seconde guerre mondiale. Aucun adulte n’ayant survécu, les enfants sont livrés à eux-mêmes. Il s’agit d’une dystopie : les enfants tenteront tout d’abord de s’organiser une société selon un système démocratique, représenté par une conque (The Conch) qui annonce, lorsque l’on souffle dedans, la tenue d’une réunion où chacun a droit à la parole. Mais c’est finalement la sauvagerie et la force brute du clan du charismatique Jack qui aura raison de l’ordre établi. Ce roman traite donc de l’ordre, du désordre, mais surtout de la nature humaine, que Golding considère comme étant profondément sombre.

Ma composition se veut être un petit poème symphonique décrivant différents épisodes du livre : le désespoir des enfants échoués sur l’île, l’utilisation de la conque rassembleuse et symbole de la démocratie, les aventures et la formation du camp et finalement la sauvagerie du clan de Jack qui mène indéniablement au chaos. Le final est mystérieux et en demi-teinte, empreint à la fois du soulagement d’avoir été secouru, et d’une profonde tristesse liée aux tragiques évènements.

Cette oeuvre a été commandée par l’Association Suisse des Musiques (ASM) dans le cadre le l’année 2023, dédiée au compositeurs suisses.

Lord of the Flies (Wind Band) / Demo by NotePerformer3

Lord of the Flies (Brass Band) / Demo by NotePerformer3

Gauthier Dupertuis: Stratoscape - Metaphorical Views on Planet Earth 

Stratoscape is a colorful and contrasting work for wind orchestra, depicting the view of our earth as seen from the stratosphere. This voyage into the sky is pictural, but also metaphorical, as it is also about distancing from our world.
The work is divided into 5 sections: 
I Ignition!, II. Broadness & The Big Blue, III Stars Shining from Down  to Above, IV Destructive Forces, V One and Only Home
Five contrasting movements, starting with Ignition in which Gauthier Dupertuis tries to musically convey the majesty of our planet seeing if from the atmosphere, ending with One and Only Hope, as the title say a message of hope. In between three movements that depict the broadness of the landscapes of our planet (second movement), the fragility of our earth at night with only the stars shining (third movement). But also sheer reality in the fourth movement when the composer translates into music the damage caused to our planet by us human beings.

Performed by Civica Filarmonica di Lugano
Franco Cesarini, conductor

Stratoscape (Wind Orchestra) / Civica Filarmonica di Lugano, Dec 2022, Franco Cesarini (conductor)

In October 2018, I had the opportunity to accompany the Wind Band La Landwehr de Fribourg as an instrumentalist during a concert tour in India. Travel between the different cities was punctuated by the horns of the different vehicles on the road, which competed in creativity. Our bus was no exception to this rule, and I ended up letting myself be inspired by this five-note pattern which, through repetition, ended up anchoring itself deeply in my brain, until it served as a musical basis for this work.

Dystopia exploits the notion of duality: in two parts (I. Prelude and II. Toccata), the work uses the double wind quintet sometimes as a single entity, sometimes as two or three groups in constant rhythmic, harmonic or writing conflict. Like in a dystopia, where the hero constantly struggles against an oppressive society, the thematic group linked to motif A (that of the car horns, exposed at the beginning of the Prelude) confronts that linked to motif B (exposed at bar 25) throughout the piece. Similarly, the free form of the Prelude contrasts with the more defined structure of the Toccata where the atmospheres linked to the two thematic groups alternate. Two short episodes highlight a third motif, more arioso, serving as divertissement and rhythmic appeasement within the Toccata.

Dystopia (Double Wind Quintet) / Demo by NotePerformer3

As part of the year 2023, dedicated to Swiss composers, the Swiss Wind Band Association has commissioned me to write a new orchestration of the Overture in E flat by Stephan Jaeggi. Indeed, an update of the instrumentation was necessary for the interpretation of these works with our modern orchestras. For example, the original orchestration (dating from 1954) contained a brass register composed of 3 parts of trumpets, 1 part of cornet, 3 parts of flugelhorn, 3 parts of Tenorhorn (!), 1 voice of Euphonium, without counting trombones, tubas, horns and other "Melodie-Althorn". Let someone introduce me to a band, in Switzerland or in the world, that can boast of having such an instrumentation!

Thus, the orchestration that I propose, and that I wanted to be faithful to the original while meeting current idiomatic standards, will allow our current orchestras to be able to interpret this work of classical-romantic inspiration which will add a refreshing touch to your concert program!


Dr. Stephan Jaeggi, composer, Berne 1956 (Photo by RDB/ullstein bild via Getty Images)
CStephan Jaeggi was a Swiss composer and conductor and was born into a large family in Fulenbach in 1903. He began playing the clarinet at the age of 13, studied music at the Basel Conservatory and graduated from the Swiss military music. After graduating, he was the conductor of several wind orchestras. In this, but also in the role as a composer, Stephan Jaeggi was able to celebrate many successes. His early death in 1957 put an early end to Stephan Jaeggi's creative life. All the more reason why his work lives on with unbroken power to this day. Stephan Jaeggi Foundation

Ouvertüre in Es (Stephan Jaeggi) / Schweizer Armeespiel, Luca Belz (cond.)

Intrada Furiosa is an energetic fanfare for symphonic wind band, featuring brilliant fanfare writing for brass and challenging lines in woodwinds, as well as more lyric parts.

The piece follows an ABA form. Right from the start of the piece, the trumpets expose the main fanfare motif of the piece. This motif is based on the 5 first notes of the Lydian scale. The low brass answer with the same motif, but augmented and inverted.

The first theme is exposed by the horns in a pompous and frenetic first section. The middle part (measure 39) introduces a new chord progression and new musical material, more lyrical and appeased. This will be developed in the following section in a majestic way, leading to a climax (measure 92). After a short and peaceful break, the music returns to the tempo primo, giving most instruments to prove their virtuosity. A crescendo in volume, orchestration and tension leads to the return of the fanfare (measure 126), this time with the harmony of the middle section.

This work was premiered on June 18th, 2022, by the Wind Band La Gérinia in Marly (Fribourg, Switzerland).

Intrada Furiosa / Koninklijke Militaire Kapel 'J.W.Friso', Franco Cesarini (conductor)

Salentin est une marche pour brass band. Son nom fait référence à la dent du Salentin (ou Salantin), qui est une montagne des Alpes valaisannes culminant à 2’482 mètres. Depuis son sommet, l’on a une très belle vue sur mon village d’origine.

La première partie, de caractère majestueux et solennel, contraste avec un Trio plus enjoué. Cette marche a été conçue de telle sorte que tous les registres de l’ensemble soient mis en avant. Elle convient à une interprétation en défilé, mais également en tant que marche de concert : des partitions optionnelles comme les timbales ont ainsi été rajoutées.

La marche est dédiée à l’Harmonie Municipale de Martigny et à leur chef Dany Rossier, qui en offrirent la première exécution lors de leur concert du 3 décembre 2023.

Salentin (Brass Band) / Demo by NotePerformer 4

Dans le cadre de son 850ème anniversaire, la ville suisse de Reinach BL m’a commandé une œuvre énergique et entraînante pour l’orchestre d’harmonie de la ville, la MG Konkordia Reinach, dirigée par maestro Miguel Etchegoncelay.

L’œuvre suit la forme d’une ouverture miniature, habitée par une pulsation quasiment régulière du début à la fin de l’œuvre. La première partie, d’un caractère résolument festif, contraste avec une partie centrale apaisée, retournant progressivement aux élans solennels et jubilatoires du début de l’œuvre. Les thèmes et différents motifs de la pièce sont tous dérivés rythmiquement ou harmoniquement de la cellule initiale de la pièce.

L’oeuvre sera créée en janvier 2024.

Reinach Jubilee / MG Konkordia Reinach, Miguel Etchegoncelay (conductor)

Instrumentation : Soprano Cnt(opt), 3Cnt, Flugel(opt), 2Hn, 2Bar, 2Tbn, BTbn(opt), Euph, EbBass, BbBass, 4Perc(3.opt)

When they are children, some people put their toys, drawings and wishes for the future in a box that they bury somewhere in order to dig it up when they are adult. The title "Postcards from tomorrow" was inspired by this tradition. what wishes would we put in those boxes for the future, what kind of postcards would we send to our grandchildren ?

To write this piece, I was inspired by three pictures that have some symbolic meaning linked to that question : each movement, played attacca, refers to one of them.

I. Abandoned Blockhouses 
(Blockhaus abandonnés)


Source : neverends.net
The title refers to the war and other horrors in the history of humanity. It is of absolute importance that we never forget what has been done before : like abandoned blockhouses, the reliques of the war will remain for a long time. but we must go forward.

Le mouvement débute par un passage usant de motifs aléatoires. Le thème de la Terre, qui servira de leitmotiv tout au long de la pièce, y est exposé dès la cinquième mesure. Le thème évolue ensuite en un cri de désespoir en ré mineur, précédant une section représentant les horreurs de la guerre, représentées par les motifs agressifs aux percussions et aux cuivres graves. Le motif joué ostinato par les bois et le vibraphone annoncent la dernière section : une fanfare basée sur le Dies Irae grégorien, dont le texte annonce le jour de la colère divine, mais qui est avant tout une demande de pardon pour nos péchés.

II. Pagoda at the Lake 
(La Pagode au bord du lac)

The second movement was inspired by the pagoda, a religous building that is aimed to house relics of saint people, in some asian worships. This could symbolise the fact that we humans need introspection and have to look back to our roots.

This calm, peaceful movement gives the lead to some solists in the ensemble and follows an arch-form (abcba), symbolising the well-balanced architecture of a pagoda.


III. Building Bridges 
(Construire des ponts)


The last movement is a call for hope. Once our past remembered, we must now be "building up the bridges" between each other and towards a better world, facing much danger (war, climate change...), but with the faith to make this world better.

The rythmic pattern set in the first few measures is used like a "bridge" between the different sections of the movement, implying a rondo form. The first two sections remind the material of the previous movements. Then, the motif is developped in a more funky way, aiming to an exhuberant finale in D major.

Postcards from tomorrow (Brass Band) / Demo by NotePerformer4

Salentin is Gauthier Dupertuis’ tribute to the Valais, the Swiss Canton where he was born. Salentin is a mountain from which there is a spectacular view of Vernayaz, the composer’s village of origin.

This piece is structured in such a way that all registers of the band are highlighted. It is suitable for performance in parade, but also as a concert march.

Salentin is dedicated to the Concert Band of Martigny (Valais/Switzerland) and its conductor, Dany Rossier, who premiered Salentin during a concert on 3rd December, 2023.

Salentin (CB) / Harmonie Municipale de Martigny, Dany Rossier (conductor)

During my last trip to Paris, I had the opportunity to visit the Louvre Museum. If it is best known for exhibiting the famous Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci, it is full of gems that you discover while getting lost in its different galleries. Among these lesser-known paintings, one of them particularly touched me : Magdalena Bay, by French painter François-Auguste Biard (1799-1882).

The work depicts a magnificent snowy landscape on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen. However, in the foreground, the presence of the wreckage of a ship, bodies covered in snow and a visibly dying character make us understand that tragic events took place there. Thus, a strong contrast is formed between death and the sublime, between the desolation of the survivors of the shipwreck and the magnificence of the landscape. When we look in more detail at the painting, we notice that footprints have been made in the snow: so, could someone have gone to get help? This little glimmer of hope makes the picture even more touching.

In this work, I tried to describe the different elements of the painting, using contrasting sections and dissonances (in particular, the conflict between the minor and the major) to convey the duality between death and the sublime. The work also attempts to highlight a wide palette of orchestral colors, from the most shimmering lines to the darkest low brass colors.

In 2024, this work was awarded the first prize as well as the band prize in the 9th European Composition Competition for Brass Band, which was held in Palanga (LT). It was premiered on May 2, 2024 by The Cory Band, conducted by Philip Harper.

Magdalena Bay (Brass Band) / Demo by NotePerformer 4

In 2024, on the occasion of its 150th anniversary, the Wind Band of the city of Biberist (Switzerland/ conducted by maestro Miguel Etchegoncelay commissioned a work from me which was intended to be rhythmic and catchy. So I thought of a frenetic piece, inhabited by energy and a constant pulsation from the first to the last note. I thus let myself be inspired by the “plasma” state, the fourth state of matter (after the solid, liquid and gaseous states) which makes up, for example, lightning or the sun.

Like a plasma ball, whose colors and shapes constantly vary, the musical material of the work is gradually transformed, both in the rhythmic signatures and harmonies and in the atmospheres: it is the same material, but always under different shape. Sometimes rhythmic and dancing, sometimes solemn and majestic, sometimes soft and lyrical, the work finds its unity in the omnipresence of an ostinato and similar rhythmic and melodic structures.

The work will be premiered in September 2024.

Plasma (Wind Band) / Demo by NotePerformer 4

The year 2025 marks the centenary of the Musikkappelle Altheim e. V, conducted by Oliver Herberger. To mark this occasion, the wind band commissioned me a concert march with a solemn and festive character.

The thematic material of the first section of the march is based on a three-note motif, as stated by the brass in the first measure. This is a musical transcription of the name of the town, “ALTHEIM” = A, B, E (A/AL, T (ti)/H = B in German, E/IM = mi). The second part of this theme presents a recurring motif throughout the march (m. 35 ff.). This first section has a festive and resolutely giocoso character. The trio presents a new, more lyrical and solemn theme. After a short divertimento based on the material from the first section, the theme returns in a majestic way, leading to a climactic finale.

Altheim (Wind Band) / Demo by NotePerformer 4

The main theme of Waterfall was inspired by Gauthier Dupertuis walking near a waterfall that makes his hometown proud. This piece is also a reflection on homesickness. Gauthier Dupertuis composed Waterfall during the Covid-19 lockdown, which prompted him to spend more time with his family, which was very welcome. For him, this waterfall symbolises a return to the sources: the water is no longer the same as it was years ago, but the waterfall is always there, just like in his childhood.

In Gauthier Dupertuis' eyes, Waterfall is a work with a certain sentimental value, as it is his very first real composition.

The work was premiered on 9 October 2020 by the wind orchestra Societat Musical 'La Constància' from Moixent (Spain) under the direction of José Alberto Pina.

Waterfall / La Concordia de Fribourg, Jean-Claude Kolly (conductor)

Stadtharmonie Zürich Oerlikon-Seebach, Leitung Carlo Balmelli, Tonhalle Zürich, 8. Februar 2025

Program Notes
“Anemoia” is the name given by the writer John Koenig to the feeling of nostalgia that one feels for a time that one has never known. This emotion often translates into the uneasy sensation of having lost something important or of not living at the right place or time: who has never felt a pang in the heart when seeing a photograph dating from the Belle Époque or the Trente Glorieuses?
Fascinated by this concept, I tried to translate it into music oscillating between exaltation, anguish and nostalgia. This feeling being universal and deeply personal, the work will undoubtedly find a particular resonance with each person.
I.	(un)desired sorrow 
The first movement first evokes the feeling of unease one feels when suddenly struck by Anemoia. It then evolves into majestic atmospheres, marking our admiration for times gone by. A moment of musical suspension ends the movement: why be so nostalgic for a bygone era, which we know is not fundamentally better than ours? Isn’t this feeling, as unpleasant as it may be, ultimately something that we humans of the 21st century are doomed to seek?
II.	behind the glass of time
The second movement treats Anemoia in a more melancholic way. When seeing that photograph from the early 1910’s, we hear the people in it speak, we imagine the noises, smells, sensations they feel… without being able to truly feel it. Finally, we are reduced to the state of spectators, held back by the impenetrable glass of passing time. All we can do is note the irremediable departure of time… and try to accept it.
The piece was written at the request of my friend Dominik Ziörjen, as part of his master's thesis at the Lausanne University of Music, and also served as my final orchestration work during my studies at the same school. It is dedicated to the most significant figure in my musical life: my teacher Jean-Claude Kolly who, in seven wonderful years of teaching, constantly encouraged and pushed me to flourish in the arts of conducting and composition. 

The premiere took place on December 6, 2024, during Jean-Claude's last concert as a conductor of the Concordia de Fribourg, marking thirty years spent conducting this wonderful wind orchestra.
 
http://stadtharmonie.ch/

Anemoia / Stadtharmonie Zürich Oerlikon-Seebach, Carlo Balmelli (conductor)

2024 marked the centenary of the Brass Band ‘L'Alpée de Vaulruz’. To mark the occasion, the band teamed up with the village's mixed choir to put on a major musical: ‘Monsieur Bigoudis’. I had the honour of composing the opening piece for this project, which was a great success !
The show was also the last major project of Gérard Descloux, a musician with L'Alpée and a legendary figure in the region's musical world. A few months later, he sadly succumbed to illness, leaving behind a band for which he had worked so hard.
Gérard had particularly appreciated my work : he congratulated me on many occasions, which touched me enormously. So it's only natural that I should dedicate this slow, meditative piece to him, using the main motifs of the overture to the musical : ‘Ô château adoré’. 


A beloved castle / Demo by Noteperformer 4

Terminal is an energetic, danceable work describing the electric atmosphere of an airport terminal, from morning until night. Repetitive rhythmic structures, symbolising the constant hustle and bustle of an airport, provide the link between a majestic introduction and the central section of the work, which travels through a world tinged with 80s/90s pop and funk music. This section also showcases the ensemble's various soloists and the percussion register, before the work returns to its original character.
The piece was commissioned by the Swiss National Youth Brass Band for the 2025 session of its B ensemble, also marking the ensemble's 50th anniversary. It was premiered in July 2025, conducted by Stefan Roth.


Terminal / Demo by Noteperformer 4

Helvetica (mov. I. - IV. - III. - V.) - DEMO

Composer and conductor based in Fribourg (Switzerland).

Gauthier Dupertuis

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